Treaty-making process (international level): basic terminology

Bilateral treaties are between two parties; multilateral treaties are
between more than two parties.

A multilateral treaty is negotiated and drafted, sometimes at a diplomatic
conference. Once the text has been concluded (done), it is signed
by representatives of the countries (States) involved in the negotiation.
The treaty will come into force (enter into force) once the specified
number of States -- having first completed the necessary treaty approval
process at the domestic level -- have deposited their instrument of ratification
(or acceptance or approval) with the necessary depositary.
This is the step by which a State becomes a party to a treaty.
States that were not among the original signatories can later accede
to the treaty. A State's ratification may be conditioned by reservations.

Bilateral treaties are negotiated and drafted by representatives of the
two parties and enter into force as specified in the treaty.

United States Treaty Practice

Treaties vs. "Executive Agreements"

"Treaty": by executive branch, with "advice and consent" of Senate.
President has the "[p]ower, by and with the Advice and Consent of the
Senate, to make Treaties, provided two-thirds of the Senators present
concur." (Const., Art.II, Sec. 2, cl. 2). As domestic law, on a par
with statutes ("Supreme law of the Land") (Const., Art. VI,
cl. 2), as long as "self-executing."

"Executive agreements" don't go through the Senate, but are internationally
binding. Negotiated by a governmental agency with authorization of the
State Department. There are many more executive agreements than treaties.
On international level, U.S. is bound. As domestic law, there might
be question as to whether they are on a par with statutes.

Treaty-Making Process (at U.S. level):

Negotiation is authorized by Secretary of State, treaty is negotiated
by the executive branch, signed by representatives of the countries
("done" or "concluded"); President sends to Senate, with letter of transmittal,
letter of submittal from Secretary of State, along with a report from
the Secretary of State that outlines the negotiating background and
describes the agreement's provisions in detail. Usually includes the
full English text of the treaty. The "transmittal package" is published
as a Senate Treaty Document (the first citable form) once the
injunction of secrecy has been removed. This is the best available working
text of a treaty ("draft treaty"). Senate Treaty Documents, from the
104th Congress (1995-1996) on, are available at the FDsys website and in HeinOnlineÂ .

Sent to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; hearings; if approved,
a Senate Executive Report is sent to the full Senate recommending
advice and consent; it includes explanatory material, reservations, understandings, declarations (see the "Resolution of Ratification"). This report
is the most important "legislative history" material at the domestic
level. Senate Executive Reports, from the 104th Congress (1995-1996) on, are available
at the FDsys website.
Reservations, etc., are also later printed in theÂ Congressional RecordÂ in connection with the Senate vote on advice and consent to ratification. (For negotiating history at international level, see the "travaux prÃ‰paratoires".)

If approved by full Senate (requires 2/3 vote), goes back to President
along with a resolution of advice and consent; president sends it to
Secretary of State, who prepares instrument of ratification; President signs instrument of ratification and proclaims the treaty. Treaty
is deposited with the designated depositary. The U.S. is now a party.
The treaty is in force for the United States on the international
plane (assuming requisite number of states have ratified). As domestic
law, usually date of proclamation.

By judicial doctrine, a treaty may be found to be self-executing or non-self-executing, i.e., requiring implementing legislation to become effective domestically. The implementing legislation becomes the rule of decision for U.S. courts.

Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS),
U.S. Department of State. Individual pamphlets. Each is assigned a number.
The pamphlets are discarded when bound volume (UST) is received.
Very slow to publish. Available in HeinOnlineÂ . The U.S. Dept. of State has started making T.I.A.S. pamphlets available on its web site (at present, 1996-2011). Int 83 1952a

United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (UST).
U.S.G.P.O. Begins 1950. Bound volumes that include many agreements,
arranged by TIAS number. Publication is problematic; last volume to appear is 1983-1984. Available in electronic
facsimile in HeinOnline.

Int 83 1952-

Before 1950, when UST started, treaties were published in the US Statutes
at Large (Stat.) but now they are in UST only.
FED

Unofficial sources for recent treaties and international agreements:

Electronic:

LexisNexisÂ U.S. Treaties on Lexis (USTRTY file).
From 1776 through current. "Full-text ratified and unratified treaties and international agreements, where the United
States is a party or signatory."

WestlawÂ U.S. Treaties and Other International Agreements (USTREATIES database). From 1778 to present, and Senate Treaty
Documents from 103d Congress, 1993. Full text of international and American
Indian treaties to which the U.S. government is a party. Includes proprietary
"KAV" numbers.

Print:

International Legal Materials, also available on LexisNexisÂ , WestlawÂ
and HeinOnlineÂ , includes text of important treaties.
Call number: I,REF JX 68 .I5

Treaty Research: 3 aspects

Finding an authoritative text (or finding whether a treaty on a certain subject exists, and
then finding the text);

Determining status: whether it is in force, for what parties, and
with what reservations;

Interpreting the treaty. This can involve legislative history (possibly both international
level and domestic level) and how construed in the courts (can be both international and
domestic);

1. Finding the text of a U.S. treaty:

Finding a Citation:

Treaties in Force. U.S. Dept. of State. Annual. Slow to publish.
List treaties, but does not contain texts. Index in front. First part:
bilateral treaties, arranged by country and then, within country, by
subject. Second part: multilateral treaties, arranged by subject. (Provides URL for depositary organization, which is most authoritative source of status for multilateral treaties.) Citations; place and date
signed; when entered in to force; when entered into force for the U.S.;
parties; footnotes can refer to reservations. Latest edition available
in PDF format from Dept. of State website and earlier years available in PDF in HeinOnlineÂ . Available on LexisNexisÂ but not always most recent edition: check scope notes.

I,REF JX 231 .T74 and int 83 A22

Updated by Dept. of State website, under "Treaty Actions" For the most recent information call Dept. of State Office of Treaty
Affairs.

A Guide to the United States Treaties in Force. Commercially
published. Updated by A Guide to Treaties in Force: Current Treaty
Actions Supplement. More access points than TIF. Available in HeinOnline.

Int 83 ZG94

United States Treaty Index: 1776-1990 Consolidation. Comprehensive
index of treaties and agreements entered into by the U.S. (whether or
not they are currently in force). Updated by Current Treaty Index.

Int 83 ZK21u4 and Supplements

The full-text online databases listed above.

2. Status: Is it in force, for what parties, and with what reservations?

Treaties in ForceÂ as updated by the Treaty Actions section of U.S. Dept. of State web site. For the most recent information call Dept. of State Office of Treaty Affairs.
Note: the texts of a country's reservations are printed in Multilateral Treaties Deposited
with the Secretary-General, published annually by the United Nations and updated on the
United Nations Treaty Collection website. For U.S. reservations, see also Senate Executive Report.
Treaties in Force includes URLs for the depository organization and the depository's status chart for the treaty.

Treaty Status/Text of Reservations

International organizations provide status information on treaties for which they are the depositary.

Treaty Indexes

FLARE Index to Treaties Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London. A " searchable database of basic information on over 2,000 of the most significant multilateral treaties and some bilateral treaties concluded between 1353 and the present, with details of where the full text of each treaty may be obtained in paper and, if available, electronic form on the internet." Bilateral treaties to 1815 only.

World Treaty IndexÂ Â A beta version of theÂ World Treaty Index(above), digitized and updated, under development. When complete the database is projected to include some 75,000 treaties covering the 20thÂ century.